US says German military leak Russian bid to split West

The United States accused Russia on Monday of attempting to sow mistrust among Ukraine and its allies by publishing an intercepted online call involving Germany’s air force chief and three subordinate about the war. 

The head of Russian state broadcaster RT, Margarita Simonyan, released a 38-minute audio recording of four officers discussing the possibility of sending Taurus missiles to Ukraine late on Friday. On Saturday, the Defense Ministry in Berlin said it believed the audio was genuine and that the conversation had been wiretapped.

"This is a bold attempt, a transparent attempt by the Russians to try to sow discord and to try to show division and try to make it look like the West isn't unified," White House national security spokesman John Kirby said.

It echoed statement by the German government who on Monday described it as a "hybrid attack aimed to generate insecurity and divide us."

What else did Kirby say?

In the online call Germany’s air force chief and three subordinates discussed the possible delivery of Taurus cruise missiles to Kyiv, which Chancellor Olaf Scholz has publicly rejected. 

Kirby said he believed Russia was attempting to make it appear as though the German government was not "unified on what they're doing" for Kiev.

"We're all working together to try to support Ukraine and the Germans have been right there in it," he added.  "Every nation has to decide for itself what it's going to do and the Germans have stepped up. They've stepped up in meaningful ways.

The clip also contains reference to the British having "a few people on the ground" in connection with the deployment of their Storm Shadow cruise missiles delivered to Ukraine. 

A spokesman for British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak told reporters the leak was a matter for Germany to investigate and Britain would continue to work with Germany to support Ukraine.

How did Germany respond to the leak?

Over the weekend Chancellor Scholz described it as "a very serious matter."

"It will now be investigated very carefully, very intensively, and very quickly," Scholz said Saturday during a visit to Rome.

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius had also accused Russia of waging an "information war."

"It is about using this recording to destabilize and unsettle us," the German minister said on Sunday expressing his belief of Russian President Vladamir Putin’s aims. He added that he "hoped that Putin will not succeed."

The military is investigating how the conversation was intercepted and recorded.

German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said that the country must do more to defend itself from Russian espionage.

"We have continued to ramp up our protective measures against espionage and disinformation and are constantly reacting to current developments," Faeser said.

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km/lo (dpa, AP, Reuters, AFP)